This is the meal I referred to in my previous post, the dinner I described as less than simple and less than minimal, at least in the context of my usual practice.

I’m no longer sure how I came upon the recipe. It may be that my mind started wandering after I had seen ‘Sea Robin’ on Blue Moon Seafood’s ‘available today’ board. The folks tweet a photo of it early each day they’re at a New York greenmarket. It helps me plan a meal (as long as I get there early enough, before my choice has been sold out). This week however they only had whole ‘Robins’. But I wasn’t anxious to work on the fish that hard, even if $1.50/lb is a mighty good price – for virtually anything!

Somehow I had already come across the ‘Cooking in Sens‘ site, where I noticed that the author’s recipe for Scorpion Fish (aka Sea Robin) included ingredients which I already had, which I was maybe anxious to use very soon, or which I just wanted to experience for the first time.

I was intrigued, and I decided I could work with ‘Scorpion Fish Fillets with Yellow Zucchini‘, using, as it turned out, a fish which is almost as low on the affordability scale as the one she had designated. The Porgy however had the good sense to come fully cleaned.

The result was a good meal, but sort of compromised by my feelings about its relative complexity; it was not really the kind of cooking I prefer, or the kind of dish either of us prefers, especially with a delicate fish.

It was what I could expect from a competent restaurant, and while that doesn’t sound like disapproval, and I don’t mean it to, the dish didn’t really seem to belong in our kitchen, where I try for an emphasis on simplicity and taking minimal steps, relying on the quality of the ingredients probably more than most cooks can, since I have both the time and the access to a magnificent local bounty.

I followed the recipe pretty closely, only substituting a few things, adding one or two.

• 6 porgy fillets (2.5-oz each) from Blue Moon Fish Company; Japanese scallions from Norwich Meadows Farm instead of shallots; yellow ‘Goldbar’ zucchini from Sycamore Farms; sweet coppa (capocollo) from Eataly; Mexican limes from Trader Joe’s; ‘Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter‘ from Whole Foods; most of one small red Calabrian chili pepper from Campo Rosso Farm; a drizzle of Ponti ‘Glassa Gastronomica’ (a heavily-reduced balsamic vinegar glaze); and micro scallions from Two Guys from Woodbridge

• an absolutely beautiful and superb ‘braising mix’ of greens from Keith’s Farm, barely wilted in a little olive oil, seasoned with Maldon salt, freshly-ground Tellicherry pepper
• the wine was a French (Rhône) white, Domaine Isle Saint Pierre Blanc Vin De France 2015
• the music was Roman Haubenstock-Ramati’s album, ‘Konstellationen’

This meal was as much of a pleasure to assemble as it was to consume.

In my next post I will describe a very different meal and a very different experience.  This one was in line with my usual preference for simplicty and a minimum of ingredients, the earlier one involved a little too much of both.

• one striped Bass fillet (just over one pound, for the two of us) from Pura Vida Fisheries, divided into two 8 or 9-ounce pieces, scored with several very shallow slashes on the skin side, to prevent curling, placed in a black ceramic La Chamba pan, skin side down, sprinkled with chopped lovage leaves from Keith’s Farm (although almost any fresh herb would do as well), sea salt and freshly-ground pepper [and, normally, some homemade dry bread crumbs at this point, which I forgot to add this time, but with no negative consequences], and a drizzle of olive oil, the pan placed in a 425º oven for about 12 or 15 minutes, after which it was removed, arranged on plates, squeezed with lemon juice, scattered with fennel flowers from Rise & Root Farm
• one Sicilian (heirloom) eggplant, from Norwich Meadows Farm, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds, covered with olive oil by turning in them over in a shallow bowl in which some had been poured, pan-grilled, turning 3 times, to ensure cross-hatching, removed to a plate, brushed with a mixture of olive oil, finely-chopped German hardneck garlic from Race Farm, chopped marjoram from Stokes Farm, lemon zest, and freshly-ground pepper, and when done, drizzled with a little more olive oil and kept slightly warm while the fish was baked.
• very ripe, very sweet, very small cherry tomatoes from Stokes Farm, rolled in olive oil inside a smaller black ceramic pan, seasoned with salt and pepper, one small, mild Grenada yellow seasoning pepper from Eckerton Hill Farm, begun before the bass in the same 425º oven and removed just before they has begun to collapse, tossed with micro mustard greens from Two Guys from Woodbridge, served in small bowls to the side of the main plates
• the wine was a California (Lodi) white, Karen Birmingham Sauvignon Blanc Lodi 2015
• the music was Per Nørgård, Symphony No. 2, performed by the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, John Storgårds conducting

I have so many deep personal associations with every aspect of the chestnut tree that I don’t even mind that the nuts themselves are the dickens to prepare.

These were in the stall of Keith’s Farm today, three nuts inside their burr in the picture at the top, baskets of nuts for sale below.

I don’t expect to be cooking with either cabbage or chestnuts this week, but I couldn’t ignore their beauty – and perfect seasonality – when I saw both being offered in the Union Square Greenmarket today.

These purple cabbage were in the stall of Tamarack Hollow Farm.

It managed to look like a bit of Scottish heath, but it’s a very Italian pasta, and just about everything else comes from our local, albeit extraordinarily heterogeneous farmers.

• a sauce composed of 2 sliced garlic cloves from Race Farm, slices of 3 red Japanese scallions, and a little crushed dried Sicilian pepperoncino from Buon Italia heated in a couple tablespoons of olive oil inside a large enameled cast iron pan until the alliums were soft, then tossed with 8 ounces of Afeltra pasta di gragnano fusilli con buco from Eataly, cooked al dente, everything stirred over low heat while some reserved pasta cooking water was added to help emulsify it, seasoned with salt and pepper, after which 2 chopped green heirloom tomatoes from Stokes Farm were mixed in before half of the pasta was divided and served in 2 bowls, sprinkled with homemade breadcrumbs which had been seasoned and toasted in a little olive oil, and scattered with micro mustard from Two Guys from Woodbridge
• the wine was an Italian (Sardinia) white, La Cala Vermentino di Sardegna 2014
• the music was Per Nørgård’s Symphony No. 1

I pretty much hate Xmas, but I can’t help think of that hugely overworked holiday when I look at the picture above.

Sorry.

On the other hand this tuna preparation has become another year-round classic for the 2 of us, although there are subtle variations each time, and it’s one which becomes easier to put together with each outing. The eggplant the accompanying vegetable, is also open to an almost infinite number of possibilities, each of them as simple to prepare as the fish.

• two 7-ounce tuna steaks from P.E. & D.D. Seafood, rubbed top and bottom with a mixture of dry Italian fennel seed and a little dried Itria-Sirissi chilis (peperoncino di Sardegna intero) from Buon Italia, which had  been ground together in a mortar-and-pestle, the surfaces of the tuna additionally seasoned with salt, and pepper, the steaks pan-grilled for only a little more than a minute or so on each side, finished with a good squeeze of lemon, scattered with fresh fennel flowers from Rise & Root Farm, and drizzled with a very good olive oil
• one Sicilian (heirloom) eggplant, from Norwich Meadows Farm, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds, brushed with olive oil, chopped garlic form Race Farm, chopped peppermint from Lani’s Farm, salt, and pepper, pan grilled, turning 3 times, removed to a platter, a which time more than a handful of small cherry tomatoes from Stokes Farm were introduced to the hot grill, the tomatoes then shoveled about the ridges until they had softened just a bit, eggplant and tomatoes sprinkled with more chopped mint and brushed with good olive oil, drizzled with a bit of lemon juice and a little olive oil, then put aside to rest for a short while at room temperature while the tuna was grilled
• the wine was an Italian (Sardinia) white, S’elegas Nuragus di Cagliari DOC 2014

• the music was a recording of two wonderful early-1950s radio operas by Hans Werner Henze, ‘Ein Landarzt’ and ‘Das Ende Einer’

[the image at the bottom, of the 21 or 22-year-old Henze, was taken in 1958 by Herbert List, and it’s from Magnum Photos]

 

And it still tastes like musty caramels.

But then there’s much more to say about it, including the subtle variations which different sauces can bring to a good pasta like this Sfoglini red fife blend.

And this particular recipe is very useful for quickly assembling a good meal after coming home late, as we did last night (I think we may even have beaten the time it would have taken a good pizza to arrive).

• eight ounces of Sfoglini ‘organic red fife blend zucca’, purchased at the Greenmarket Regional Grains Project stall in Union Square Greenmarket, cooked al dente, mixed with a sauce made by starting out with 2 large cloves of ‘German Hardneck‘ garlic from Race Farm, sliced, and a little dried red pepper flakes, heating both in a large cast iron enameled pan for about one minute, adding some chopped collard greens from Tamarack Hollow Farm, stirring the mix for 5 minutes, or until tender, pouring in 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, and then the zest from most of one lemon, emulsified by stirring the pasta for a minute or 2 over low heat, along with some reserved pasta water, the pasta served in bowls with grated pecorino romano cheese from Buon Italia on top
• the wine was an Italian (Piedmont) white, The Piedmont Guy Ercole Monferratu DOC Bianco 2015
• the music was that of the fantastic creative and experimental new music champion, Hans Zender, from the album, ‘HANS ZENDER: Cabaret Voltaire’, which includes ‘Cabaret Voltaire’ and ‘Mnemosyne – Hölderlin lesen IV’, performed by Klangforum Wien, Salome Kammer, and Hans Zender; we listened to it on Spotify

The tomatoes were piling up again, but since I already had made a decision about which vegetables would accompany the salmon, I just added a simple salad/appetizer course.

• a handful or two of arugula from Alewife Farm, torn into fork-size pieces, topped with wedges of ripe red heirloom tomatoes from Lani’s Farm, drizzled with a good olive oil, good sea salt, freshly-ground pepper, and a bit of white balsamic vinegar, sprinkled with torn New York City basil from Gotham Greens via Whole Foods
• the wine was an Italian (Piedmont) white, Ioppa Vino Bianco San Grato 2015

 

When it came to the main course, there were micro things everywhere, perhaps partly just because they had been hanging around.

• one 15-ounce fresh (never frozen) wild sockeye salmon fillet from Whole Foods, coated on both sides with a mix of light brown turbinado sugar, sea salt, freshly ground pepper, freshly ground allspice, freshly ground nutmeg, and the zest of half of a lemon, marinated in the refrigerator in a covered dish for about 4 hours, after which time the fish was rinsed, patted dry, brought to room temperature, oiled generously, and cooked on an enameled grill pan, flesh side down, removed when the inside was medium pink, the outside crisp and smoky, divided onto 2 plates, sprinkled with micro scallions from Two Guys from Woodbridge, and served with lemon wedges [the recipe I used was fundamentally this one from Melissa Clark]
• flat green or Romano beans from Berried Treasures Farm, par-boiled, drained, dried (shaking over a flame in the pan in which they had cooked), reheated in a bit of olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, sprinkled with purple micro radish from Windfall Farms
• two medium ‘new’ potatoes (which had eventually matured in the crisper, and which were probably Red Norland) from Central Valley Farm, boiled in well-salted water, drained, dried in the still-warm glass pot, quartered, rolled in a little olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, sprinkled with fennel flower from Rise & Root Farm
• the wine was a California (Solano) red, David Akiyoshi California Pinot Noir 2015

 

• the music throughout the meal was that of Charles Wuorinen, and notably, his trio for flute, bass clarinet, and piano, ‘Metagong’, heard on Spotify

This is what our eggs looked like this morning while they were still in the iron pan. I’m not happy with the picture I took of them once they were on a plate, so I’ll have to describe what’s missing in the image above and added later.

• aside from the 6 eggs from Millport Dairy Farm, sliced red scallion stems from Norwich Meadows Farm, 10 small ripe cherry tomatoes from Stokes Farm, Maldon salt and freshly-ground Tellicherry pepper, there were also slices of toast from a loaf of Eataly’s ‘Rustico Classico’, thick slices of fried bacon from Millport Dairy Farm,   dried crushed organioc wild fennel flowers from Buon Italia, and fresh cut fennel blossoms from Rise & Root Farm, a small mound of chopped papalo from Lani’s Farm, and a wonderful aromatic Middle-Eastern-style seasoning blend, ‘L’eKama‘ from NY Shuk
• the music was a biblical ‘passion’ which has rarely been executed by composers, that of Saint Mark, and specifically Reinhard Keiser’s ‘Jesus Christus ist um unsrer Missetat willen verwundet‘, which we heard on Spotify

A head of lettuce may be a head of lettuce – but sometimes it’s a rose – here, specifically, either Boston, Butter, or Bibb lettuce (I forgot to ask Tyler), seen yesterday at the Alewife Farm Union Square Greenmarket stand.